10 November 2009

The Copenhagen Cargo Bike 'Car'

Secure parking for four cargo bikes in the same space on the street that one car takes up. The symbolism speaks for itself. You park your cargo bike inside a car. Brilliant.

Copenhagen is cargo bike heaven. Copenhagenize.com's Flickr set - Danish Cargo Bike Culture - will attest to that. The City's Bicycle Office is keen to improve conditions for the city's cargo bike owners. The number of cargo bikes on the streets has exploded and 6% of all households in the city own at least one cargo bike. Copenhagenize.com estimates that there are roughly 30,000 cargo bikes in the city.
Actually, 25% of families with two or more children have a cargo bike and 50% of all Copenhageners with a cargo bike use it to transport children. Interestingly, only 2% of Copenhagen cyclists find cargo bikes irritating.

In addition, 22% of cargo bike owners in the city have the bike instead of a car and 24% use their cargo bike as a supplement to their car. Car ownership is also very low in Copenhagen. Only 29% of households have one.
This cargo bike craze is positive because people are using the cargo bikes to replace cars and car trips in the city. At the same time, the development is an interesting challenge for the city's traffic planners. Including how to park them effectively. They can be tricky to get through the doorway to the back courtyard and you can't really leave them on the sidewalk like a normal bike as they take up too much space.
The Mayor in charge of the Technical and Environmental Administration, Klaus Bondam, is thrilled about the project:

”The many Copenhageners who invest in a cargo bike help make Copenhagen a more sustainable and liveable metropolis. We must, of course, take the cargo bikes into consideration when planning. And we do that by offering them some proper parking spots".

Here's how it works. The new cargo bike 'car' is a pilot project running for six months, after which the experiences of the users and neighbours will be evaluated, as well as the condition of the fiberglass 'cars'.

The shell is made of fiberglass and is comprised of four separate cabins, each with room for one bike. This means that four bicycles can park in the space normally taken up by one car.

The 'car' has four solar powered 'headlights' that turn on in the dark hours. In addition, a solar powered light turns on inside when one of the doors is opened. Hooks and a net are mounted on the walls of each cabin, for hanging up rain clothes and other gear.
During the test period, selected cargo bike owners will recieve a key for a cabin. In the long run, the idea is that cabins will be available for a parking fee, much like we now have for local car owners.

The model at the top is one of two prototypes. The location for the other one is not yet decided. The current test takes place at Krusågade 24, in Vesterbro.

that's a realy good idea and you are lucky to have a realy active town hall (i don't realy know how to say in english) and it's a very good way to show to cars how much space they stole us in cities...

Huh??? Did you think it would be more? Do Copenhageners generally find cargo bikes irritating?As someone who is desperately trying to convince her husband that "no, I don't need a new car, I just need a £2000 bike" the thought that I might be irritating to laid back, socially progressive Copenhagen folks is slightly worrying ;)

@Missy Mookins, it's sensible to expect that some would be annoyed with the cargo bikes. The bikelanes are, in places, only wide enough to accomodate one of these, with no chance of overtaking. Also, they are commonly among the slowest bike on the lane. (not unlike an SUV in a city of narrow streets).

Considering that a lot people, everywhere in the world, are idiots, it's surprising that no more than two percent find them irritating.

@Raymonster: A new Sorte Jernhest (with no accessories) sell for 12000 DKR. The oldest resale on DBA.dk is from 2002, and is on sale for 8500.Considering you'd want it shipped, I'd recommend you spring 50% extra, and get a bike that's not so worn down. (considering a 66% depreciation over 7 years, a 14 year old bike would cost you 5.000, which is still a lot. Better to score the resale value from a new vehicle)

Kilometres cycled by Copenhageners so far today

Copenhagenize.com is the blog of Copenhagenize Design Company. Online since 2007 and highlighting the cycling life in Copenhagen and around the world.

40 years ago Copenhagen was just as car-clogged as anywhere else but now 41% of the population arriving at work or education do so on bicycles, from all over the Metro area. 55% of Copenhageners themselves use bicycles each day. They all use over 1000 km of bicycle lanes in Greater Copenhagen for their journeys. Copenhagenizing is possible anywhere.